Winter’s Mead

Keep this handy during the colder months to ward off any colds or illnesses, if you do happen to succumb to winter chills this natural remedy will help soothe the throat and warm the bones.
10 cups of Water
1.5kg Honey
2 teaspoons of Lemon juice
2 tablespoons of minced ginger
1 fresh chili (optional)
1 sachet MJ M05 Mead yeast or MJ SN9 (Use only 1/4 of either yeast per 5Ltr batch)

1. Pour water into the pot and add all ingredients. Turn stove on warm and gently stir until all ingredients have dissolved. Once dissolved, funnel into a 5lt demijohn.
2. Fill the rest of the demijohn with warm water, leaving 2cm of space at the top. Leave the mixture to reach room temperature, (15 – 26 degrees Celsius). Once it is at room temperature, shake the demijohn to aerate the mixture.
3. Pour in yeast, fit bung and airlock and store in a warm dark place. Fermentation will generate a little heat, but you can also wrap a towel around the demijohn to keep out light and keep it warm.
4.Let it sit completely undisturbed for approximately 10 days or until fermentation has stopped.
5. When it has finished fermenting, place the demijohn in the fridge for 24 hours. The cool temperature will ensure that all the yeast has died.
6. Filter or syphon the mead into another sterilised demijohn being careful to leave all the sediment behind. Leave to sit for a few days so any further sediment settles to the bottom of the demijohn.
7. If the Mead is clear enough and no sediment is evident, filter or syphon through coffee filters into bottles. If the mead is still not clear enough, filter it through coffee filters back into your other demijohn again. You can repeat this process as many times as you like until it is clear. Your meads are now ready to drink!

Beer

Tips for temperature control:
-Use the chilled water to reach a satisfactory temperature and add yeast immediately.
-Maintain a cool even temperature in the fermenter.
-Place the fermenter in a tray and wrap it in a blanket with an end in a container of water.
-Placing the fermenter on a concrete slab can also help to keep the temperature constant.
–Use a Brewing Thermostat and a fridge for optimum brewing conditions all year round.

Mead

Spirits

-To make oak spirit use a 4-5 Litre wide neck glass jar, use around 200-300g of oak blocks or chips and 1 litre of vodka/neutral spirit. Soak for at least 14 days but the flavour intensifies the longer you leave the oak soaking. When ready, strain the oak out by passing it through filter wool in a funnel.